Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

Autumn has officially arrived in Berlin, with all its pros and cons: lovely red and yellow leaves and lots of rain.

Also, the days are getting shorter, and most of us have fewer activities planned. So what better way to embrace the cozy season than with some embedded finance events? (Smooth transition, right? 😉)

Virtual Event on November 7th → Want to learn more about Embedded Lending? Join us for an Ask Me Anything where you can grill people who have actually built these products. No question too basic, no question too nerdy. [Register here]

Berlin Event on November 19th → Confused by the jungle of fintech providers? Join us for a casual after-work event where our builders share their lessons on stage, and you can network with the people who actually matter in the ecosystem. [Register here]

And now let’s dive in 👇

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Allica Bank Acquires Embedded Lending Platform Kriya to Expand Customer Reach

British business bank Allica Bank has acquired embedded lending provider Kriya.

Allica Bank received its banking licence in 2019 and is offering business accounts, savings products and financing options to SMEs in the UK. Allica Bank has grown significantly over the last few years, achieving profitability for the first time in 2023 (Allica Bank) and surpassing £3 billion in lending and £4 billion in deposits in 2024 (Allica Bank).

Kriya, formerly known as MarketInvoice and MarketFinance, was launched in 2011 and offers a B2B payment and financing solution for platforms. While integrating Kriya, platforms can offer B2B BNPL, invoice financing and working capital loans to their customers. As previously covered, Kriya has partnered with Stripe in 2024 for its B2B BNPL product in the UK (EFR) and with Motoring and Cycling Merchant Halfor for purchase financing (EFR).

This acquisition adds another example to the trend of banks (even though it’s a neobank) buying embedded finance providers. For me, the strategic play here is pretty straightforward: Allica Bank is betting on embedded finance as a new customer acquisition channel.

As Allica continues to scale, acquiring customers directly becomes increasingly challenging and expensive. Kriya changes that dynamic. Through Kriya's platform integrations, Allica Bank can now reach businesses that are already using these platforms but aren't yet banking with Allica. The beauty of this approach is that it starts with a financing relationship (e.g., B2B BNPL, invoice financing, or working capital loans), which naturally creates an entry point. Once a business has its first positive experience with financing through Kriya (powered by Allica), there's a great potential to convert them into full banking customers over time.

E-commerce Lender Wayflyer Launches Hosted Capital Platform Financing Solution

E-commerce financing provider Wayflyer has launched Hosted Capital, which allows platforms to offer financing products to their own customers (Business Wire).

Wayflyer, founded in Ireland, operates in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and a few European countries (incl. the UK, Germany, Spain) and targets exclusively e-commerce and consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies with financing products.

Until now, e-commerce businesses had to discover and apply for Wayflyer financing on their own. Hosted Capital changes this by enabling platforms to integrate Wayflyer's financing directly into their offerings. Platforms can now display indicative financing offers to their customers and earn commissions when those customers choose a Wayflyer product.

But here's the catch: this isn't fully embedded finance. When a business wants to move forward with financing, it gets redirected to Wayflyer's own platform to complete the application. The user experience breaks out of the platform rather than staying seamlessly embedded within it.

This approach likely makes integration significantly easier for platforms since they don't need to handle the whole application flow. And honestly, this looks like a first step. I guess that Wayflyer is testing the waters with a lighter integration model before eventually building out a fully embedded product where the entire journey stays within the platform. Long term, offering both options makes sense: hosted capital gives platforms an easy entry point to start offering financing. At the same time, a fully embedded product delivers the seamless experience that drives better conversion rates. Different platforms will want different levels of integration depending on their resources and priorities.

MrBeast Files Trademark for "MrBeast Financial" Entering Fintech Space

YouTube star MrBeast has filed an application to trademark the brand "MrBeast Financial". The story was discovered by RollingStone (first time I can quote them 😉), and besides the trademark application, we don't know anything else.

MrBeast, whose real name is James Donaldson, is best known for his YouTube videos but also owns a burger brand, a chocolate company and lunch kits. I haven't tried any of his products, and they might be good. But it's also fair to assume that much of their success comes from MrBeast's massive distribution reach and loyal fanbase.

So the big question: can that same formula work for financial services? Selling burgers or chocolate bars through brand recognition and social media reach is one thing. Financial products are another. They require trust, regulatory compliance, and often long-term relationships. MrBeast has the attention and the audience, but financial services will test whether that translates into actual product adoption and sustained usage.

To be clear, there's no indication this will involve embedded finance. This looks more like a branded financial services play, similar to what Richard Branson did with Virgin Money. A recognisable non-financial brand leveraging its reach to enter financial services directly. Whether MrBeast Financial becomes a neobank, a credit card, investment products, or something else entirely remains to be seen. But it's worth watching which markets they launch in, what products they choose, and whether MrBeast's audience actually converts into financial services customers.

In other Embedded Finance news

• Edenred and Visa have entered into a strategic partnership to develop payment solutions for businesses and employees across Europe (The Paypers).

• Embedded Lending orchestrator provider Groov has added Iwoca to its embedded lending platform as a new financing partner (LinkedIn).

• US bank Fifth Third sees Embedded Finance as a growth engine (PYMNTS).

• US Truist Bank is piloting an embedded banking solution that enables treasury workflows (such as reconciliation and reporting) and real-time payments and approvals within supported enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems (PYMNTS).

• 94% of enterprises in the US plan to increase their investments in embedded finance, with three out of four planning to increase investments in the next 12 months, according to a study commissioned by US bank Green Dot. Companies are focused on banking (80%), payments (72%), payroll (61%) and investing (57%) products or features (PYMNTS).

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this edition.

My newsletter, podcast, and event activities are free, but I need your support to continue. Please share Embedded Finance Review with your friends and coworkers, and let me know your feedback (links above).

And if you need help understanding, building, or launching an embedded finance product, visit my website and get in touch with me.

Best wishes from Berlin,

Lars Markull (LinkedIn)

Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

Welcome to the Fintech Jungle. That's the theme for our upcoming Berlin event on November 19th at 6pm. Building fintech products means navigating a jungle: Build or buy? Which infrastructure provider? These decisions can make or break your product. Join us for an evening with real insights on stage and authentic networking off stage. Sponsored by Banking Circle and Visa. Register now

And now let’s dive in 👇

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Embedded Insurance for Horses (Podcast)

Embedded insurance for horses? That's what I thought too. Until I spoke with Finlay Dargan from Equine MediRecord.

Here's the problem: 99% of horses globally have zero insurance. Too expensive. Too much hassle. Too much paperwork.

Here's the solution: Embed it directly into the software horse owners already use daily.

What I found fascinating:

• 6-9 month insurance integrations now take 1 week

• Vertical SaaS platforms sitting on a goldmine of data

• Embedded insurance is 3-4 years behind fintech (huge opportunity)

• The winning combo: 100-year-old insurance brands + modern tech

The whole episode with Finlay (Equine MediRecord), Paul Prendergast (Kayna), and Anthony Borgman (WTW) is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Worth a listen even if you've never been near a horse.

Betterfly shares insights on their employee benefits card in Spain

Betterfly, a Chile-headquartered startup that provides a wellbeing and insurance platform in Latin America and Spain, shared some insights into their card program in the Spanish market: Over 70% of employees activate benefits after onboarding, and more than 80% use cards regularly (Betterfly Product Page, Swan).

How does the card work? Spanish tax law lets employees allocate up to 30% of gross salary to tax-advantaged benefits: meals (€11/day tax-free), transport (€1,500/year), childcare and training. Employees who can make use of these tax advantages can boost their take-home pay by 15% without any salary increase. Since it’s so beneficial, more than 70% of Spanish companies already offer it.

Why not 100%? Without a tailored software product, the process can be pretty tedious: tracking daily limits, filing receipts and audits from the tax authority. Companies like Betterfly fix this: they build the compliance layer directly into the card itself. The card only works when it’s within the requirements, such as daily limits for the appropriate merchant.

Betterfly is not alone in this space. I looked at the Spanish market some years ago and remember Cobee and Payflow with a similar solution (but probably many more). The incredibly strong tax benefits are obviously a huge driver, and the cards become a daily routine: metro rides, lunch, wellness activities.

Similar employee benefit card providers exist across Europe, but adoption varies significantly. The biggest factor? The size of the tax benefits. In Germany, for example, employers can provide €50 per month in non-cash benefits as well as meal vouchers, transport subsidies, and childcare support. The limits are reasonable but nowhere near Spain's 30% threshold.

German providers also faced another challenge: regulatory uncertainty around whether cards would be allowed for tax benefits at all. Back in 2020/2021, when I was trying to sell card solutions to tax benefit providers, this was a major concern. This changed soon after, and cards became an accepted delivery method. That said, stories like this regulatory uncertainty help explain why card adoption for employee benefits developed so differently across European markets.

SAP and Oracle (continue to) embed payments directly into their platforms

Three major announcements dropped this week, showing that embedded finance is moving from startups straight into the core of enterprise software.

Firstly, Adyen went live with SAP's Open Payment Framework (OPF), a pre-built integration for SAP Commerce Cloud that eliminates manual payment integrations (The Paypers). Secondly, Brex became the first fintech issuer embedded within Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP, enabling customers to select Brex virtual cards directly from payables workflows (PYMNTS). And thirdly, KNEX partnered with Visa to embed virtual card capabilities directly into Oracle ERP systems (Finextra).

This isn’t the first time we are seeing SAP or Oracle making moves in Embedded Finance. But all three announcements in one week show that the momentum is increasing.

Also, what's standing out for me is: these are not the traditional payment partnerships anymore. The focus is on ‘embedded’: SAP's OPF is described as "pre-built, cloud-native" with Adyen as the first PSP live on it. Brex's virtual cards can be selected directly within Oracle's payables workflows. The KNEX Visa adapter is a "pre-configured, low-code integration layer" that facilitates payments within the ERP.

In other Embedded Finance news

• Pleo launches cash management suite for Germany and UK (Finextra)

• Toqio and the Deloitte Spain team on embedded finance (Finextra)

• New EBA report finds that white labelling is widely used in banking and payments (The Paypers)

• And Neobanks are doing non-financial things:

  • Revolut acquires AI travel agent (Finextra)

  • Monzo adds a built-in tax filing tool (Finextra)

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this edition.

My newsletter, podcast, and event activities are free, but I need your support to continue. Please share Embedded Finance Review with your friends and coworkers, and let me know your feedback (links above).

And if you need help understanding, building, or launching an embedded finance product, visit my website and get in touch with me.

Best wishes from Berlin,

Lars Markull (LinkedIn)

Embedded Insurance Meets Horse Racing: How Equine MediRecord Solved a Global Underinsurance Problem

When Finlay Dargan and his brother started Equine MediRecord to help their family's horse breeding business manage paperwork, they uncovered a startling problem: the vast majority of horses worldwide have zero insurance coverage. Horse insurance is expensive, difficult to obtain, and requires cumbersome paperwork, leaving owners exposed to significant financial risk.

In this episode, Finlay joins Paul Prendergast from embedded insurance technology provider Kayna and Anthony Borgman from insurance broker WTW to explain how they partnered to launch an embedded mortality insurance solution for horse owners in the UK. This conversation reveals how vertical SaaS platforms are uniquely positioned to solve industry-specific insurance gaps, and why embedded insurance is poised for explosive growth despite being 3 to 4 years behind embedded fintech.

The Global Horse Insurance Crisis: Why 99% of Horses Are Uninsured

• The vast majority of horses in Europe and globally have no insurance coverage whatsoever

• Horse insurance is traditionally difficult to obtain, expensive, and involves significant paperwork barriers

• For many horse owners, especially trainers managing 30 to 400 horses, the administrative burden makes insurance impractical

• This creates massive financial risk, particularly in horse racing, where individual horses can be worth hundreds of thousands

• Self insurance works for some large operations, but leaves most individual owners and smaller trainers vulnerable

• The problem extends beyond horses: 43% of UK small business insurance claims involve underinsurance (Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters, 2024)

From Paperwork to Platform: How Equine MediRecord Digitized Horse Health Records

• Equine MediRecord started as a solution to digitize medical records for horses, which were previously paper only due to legal requirements

• The company comes from five generations of Irish horse breeders who experienced the paperwork burden firsthand

• They had to work with regulators across multiple countries to change legislation allowing digital records

• The platform tracks medications, vaccinations, treatments, and sends automated vaccination reminders

• Primary customers are horse trainers in racing, which faces the strictest health regulations for integrity and welfare reasons

• Customers range from owners with 1 to 2 horses to large training operations with 200 to 400 horses

• The medical data is considered secret sauce by trainers, critical proprietary information about their training methods

The Technology Layer: How Kayna Enables Fast Embedded Insurance Integration

• Kayna provides the digital integration layer between vertical SaaS platforms and insurance providers

• Instead of 6 to 9 month integration projects, Kayna enables embedded insurance launches in approximately one week

• The platform is insurance line agnostic, whether it's construction company revenue or horse age, it's just data to us

• Kayna works across diverse industries: retail gas stations in the US, construction, field services, and now equine

• The technology is consent driven, allowing platform owners to control their data while enabling seamless insurance quotes

• Kayna's model: an inch deep and a mile wide, partnering with vertical SaaS platforms that serve specific communities with unique distribution and valuable data

WTW's Affinity Insurance Model: Bringing Insurance Expertise to Non Insurance Platforms

• WTW's GB Affinity practice specializes in distributing insurance through organizations whose core activity isn't insurance

• Affinity insurance is a well established distribution method now being modernized through embedded technology

• WTW works with membership groups, vertical SaaS, marketplaces, retailers, and manufacturers

• The traditional insurance buying process is time consuming and requires consumers to input extensive data manually

• Embedded insurance simplifies this by pre populating data from the platform, reducing friction dramatically

• WTW brings the insurance expertise and capacity; Kayna provides the nimble capability to connect the dots

• The partnership between WTW and Kayna existed before Equine MediRecord approached them, enabling faster deployment

How the Embedded Insurance Solution Works for Horse Owners

• Horse owners log into Equine MediRecord and see a new Insurance tab alongside their existing tabs (Home, Horse, Treatments)

• They select which horses they want to insure directly within the platform they already use daily

• Data from Equine MediRecord flows through Kayna's integration layer to WTW's insurance offering

• The solution pre populates information the platform already has, minimizing manual data entry

• Currently focused on mortality insurance as the foundational product

• Launched initially in the UK market, with plans to expand

• The seamless integration means horse owners can get insured without leaving their workflow or duplicating data entry

Future Opportunities: Dynamic Coverage and Micro Insurance for Horses

• Horse values fluctuate dramatically based on race performance, a winning horse immediately becomes underinsured

• Equine MediRecord could trigger insurance adjustment prompts when a horse wins a race, addressing underinsurance in real time

• Expansion beyond mortality insurance to other horse insurance types is planned

• Micro insurance for short term coverage during specific events like horse transportation or travel

• Integration with race data could connect medical records with performance data to create more sophisticated risk profiles

• Finlay emphasizes starting with one product done well, then building upon that foundation

• The key is allowing customers to adopt gradually rather than overwhelming them with options

The Broader SME Insurance Crisis and How Embedded Insurance Solves It

• In the UK, micro SMEs (up to 10 employees) represent 99% of all businesses by volume

• These businesses employ 60% of the private sector workforce and generate 50% of private sector turnover

• Yet 40% of US small businesses have no insurance; similar protection gaps exist in the UK

• The frightening term: unknowingly underinsured, businesses don't realize their coverage is inadequate

• Small business owners don't have risk management functions like large enterprises; they're experts in their field, not insurance

• A business might start with basic coverage, then hire their first employee mid-year without realizing they need employer liability coverage

• Vertical SaaS platforms with payroll functionality can detect this change and alert the business owner automatically

• In construction, 20% of subcontractors cancel insurance before year end to save money, creating liability gaps platforms can address through compliance driven embedded insurance

Why Embedded Insurance Is Growing Now: Infrastructure Finally Catching Up

• Embedded insurance is approximately 3 to 4 years behind embedded fintech in development

• The same challenges embedded fintech faced years ago, embedded insurance is facing now, but the Lego blocks are being put in place

• Carriers and brokers are rapidly building API capabilities and digitizing operations at the backend

• Insurance integration traditionally took 6 to 9 months; modern embedded solutions reduce this to one week

• Hiscox CEO Aki Hussain predicts 15% of their European P&C business will be embedded within five years, a colossal amount

• After embedding payments successfully, platforms look to add banking, payroll, accounting, and insurance to their stack

• For payments, platforms want solutions that work today; for insurance, they want partners with 100-year track records

• The winning formula combines established insurance expertise (WTW, Markel) with fast-moving technology (Kayna)

• Software platforms want the best of both worlds: safety and credibility with speed and innovation

Key Takeaways for Vertical SaaS Platforms and Non-Financial Brands

• If your platform holds valuable data about your customers' businesses or assets, embedded insurance may be relevant

• Look for pain points where your customers face underinsurance, high administrative burden, or compliance requirements

• The embedded insurance model works best when you can offer coverage you can't get off-platform, tailored to your specific vertical

• Start with one insurance product and prove value before expanding

• Partner with established insurance brokers and carriers for credibility, paired with modern technology providers for speed

• Integration time has dropped from months to weeks, making embedded insurance increasingly feasible

• Trust and data control are paramount; customers need to know their proprietary data remains protected

• Consider how changing risk profiles during policy periods could trigger proactive insurance adjustments

You can download the whitepaper that we mentioned during the episode here.

Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

I had a fun last week with lots of events and podcasting activities (see my LinkedIn post). This included our virtual event on Friday, which definitely catered to the embedded finance geeks as the topic was co-brands vs. Embedded Finance.

For our next virtual event, I'm switching gears. This time, I want to focus on non-financial brands and their practical questions around Embedded Lending.

Is your company thinking about, planning, or in the early phase of launching a lending product? Then join us on November 7th for our new format, 'Ask Me Anything: Embedded Lending Edition'. I'm collecting questions from the community and will be discussing them with two experienced Embedded Lending builders. This is your chance to get answers to the questions that actually matter when you're building this stuff.

That said, anyone curious about embedded lending or wanting to learn more about the space is welcome to join too: Register here.

And now let’s dive in 👇

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Payments have embedded themselves into everything (your favourite retail brands, business platforms, social media apps, you name it!). The best versions make money movement so seamless, you forget it's there.

Marqeta powers many of these experiences.

Historically, building that kind of experience meant choosing between proven OR ground-breaking, stability OR flexibility.

Marqeta delivers both.

How Polish Marketplace Allegro Built a Bank-Scale Lending Business Through Embedded Finance

Polish e-commerce marketplace Allegro is a role model for many. It’s not only Europe's largest e-commerce platform by website visits and the biggest marketplace of European origin, but it also uses Embedded Finance to further grow its transaction volume.

The company offers a B2C marketplace with over 21 million active buyers and a B2B marketplace with over 160,000 merchants. The primary market remains Poland, but the company has also expanded to other Eastern European countries (e.g., the Czech Republic, Slovakia & Hungary).

Allegro Pay is a payment and financing solution enabling consumers to defer payments for 30 days or split the purchase into instalments for up to 20 months. Allegro Pay is also available on its B2B marketplace and offers merchants a similar service, although with slightly different timing options.

This week, I went through press releases and investor reports to understand the volume of Allegro’s Embedded Finance exposure (Allegro):

• 52% of loans originated by Allegro Pay increased their marketplace transactions (Q4 2024)

• Allegro Pay achieved loan origination similar to leading Polish banks (Q4 2024; excl. mortgages)

• Allegro Pay funds 15.3% of GMV in Q2, with loans originated at PLN 3.3 billion (Q2 2025)

• Excellent customer satisfaction reflected in NPS score of 94 (Q2 2025)

• Loans originated generated PLN 135 million in interest, fees and profits on sale to funding partners for Allegro Pay (28% annualised return; Q4 2024)

The most significant new development happened in September 2024, when Allegro teamed up with Visa to launch a payment card that made Allegro Pay features available outside of its own marketplace (Allegro).

As you can see, Allegro has substantial exposure to Embedded Finance, using it not only to create new revenue but also to grow their marketplace. Each investor presentation of the past few years has had a slide about Medium-term strategic priorities. What’s a recurring point on the slide? Building new engines through seamless fintech solutions.

How Payroll Provider PayCaptain Launched Savings Accounts for Employee Access

UK-based payroll provider PayCaptain has launched real-time payroll payments and savings accounts through a partnership with infrastructure provider ClearBank (Crowdfund Insider).

Before any of you call me out, I haven't used the words 'embedded finance' for this use case. Why is that? A payroll provider isn't the usual kind of non-financial brand, like a retailer or vertical SaaS, as payroll is closely related to payments and, thus, financial services. On the other hand, payroll software isn't really a core offering from most banks, especially when we focus on the 'software' aspect. So I hope you agree with me that there's some relevance for the embedded finance ecosystem, even if it sits in a grey zone.

What really caught my eye here is the savings account feature. Real-time payroll is great, but the savings account is where things get interesting. Employees at companies using PayCaptain can now open savings accounts with competitive interest rates directly through the platform. It reminds me of what Gusto is doing in the US with their embedded investment solution through pension savings.

The potential here is significant. A savings account embedded in payroll software could reach customers that financial institutions struggle to access on their own. The key question is integration. How well is this embedded into the actual customer journey? If PayCaptain gets this right, I could see other players jumping in. HR software companies (e.g. Personio from Germany) or employee of record service providers (e.g., Deel from the US) could follow suit and start adding similar financial features to their platforms. It's a space worth watching.

From Embedded Finance to Embedded Everything: Unit's New Service Directory

US Embedded Finance provider Unit has launched the Embedded Everything Directory. In this Directory, Unit presents a variety of US-focused service providers for any 'Embedded' services, such as embedded accounting, business formation, marketing and payroll.

This comes shortly after Unit expanded its offering from pure embedded banking to include financing and payment services.

The Directory is clearly broader than just Embedded Finance, as it covers many non-financial services as well. The logic behind Embedded Everything is actually pretty straightforward. Once you have customers using your platform, distribution becomes your most valuable asset. You already have their trust, their attention, and you're already solving one problem for them. So why send them elsewhere when they need accounting software, payroll services, or business insurance?

This is where embedded service providers come in. They allow any company to offer services beyond their core product without having to build everything from scratch. The key difference from a regular API provider? It's about selling a complete service to your customers, not just adding a technical feature to your product. You're becoming a one-stop shop, and the embedded provider handles the complexity in the background.

The Directory is a lovely source of inspiration for what is available in the US market. On my side, I have been managing my own internal overview of Embedded Finance service providers in Europe. Maybe I should make this list available in a similar way?

In other Embedded Finance news

• Navri bids to make launching a digital bank as easy as building a website (Finextra).

• Deutsche WertpapierService Bank has completed the acquisition of the Berlin-based FinTech Lemon Markets, following approval by BaFin (Finextra).

• Embedded remittance infrastructure provider Remitee has raised $20 million to help banks, fintechs, and retailers integrate instant cross-border payments directly into their apps and platforms (Finextra).

• Pipe launched a US-focused guide and interview series themed “Vertical SaaS and Fintech Disruption by a Thousand Cuts”.

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this edition.

My newsletter, podcast, and event activities are free, but I need your support to continue. Please share Embedded Finance Review with your friends and coworkers, and let me know your feedback (links above).

And if you need help understanding, building, or launching an embedded finance product, visit my website and get in touch with me.

Best wishes from Berlin,

Lars Markull (LinkedIn)

Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

There is a lot of event activity on my end these days:

1. Virtual Event on October 10th → What’s the difference between Co-Branded Cards and Embedded Finance, and why the heck does it matter? Register here

2. Virtual Event on November 7th → Ask Me Anything: Embedded Lending Edition. I will be joined by two former podcast guests: Stefan Scherpenborg, Head of Capital at Jewellery Marketplace Nivoda, and Mark Holleman, (former) Co-Founder & CPO at B2B Lending Provider Sprinque. We will discuss all kinds of questions from the community with only one goal: to learn more about Embedded Lending. Register here 

3. Berlin → A private B2B SaaS Dinner on Thursday (Oct 9th) evening hosted together with Swan. Feel free to reach out to me for one of the last spots.

Additionally, I am finalising the details for our last in-person event of 2025, which will happen in Berlin. You can already block the evening of November 19th. Details will hopefully follow soon.

And now let’s dive in 👇

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Building the Real Estate Operating System with GetMomo's Marcel Meitza

Did you know that property managers in Germany spend hours every day just figuring out which tenants have paid rent?

In my latest podcast episode, Marcel Meitza from getmomo explains how his vertical fintech is solving the €30+ billion problem by building banking infrastructure specifically for real estate.

Key insights:

• Why German bank partnerships were non-negotiable for customer trust

• How GetMomo acts as a "fintech plugin" for existing ERPs, enabling gradual adoption without system replacement

• Why industry-specific fintech solutions can outcompete both traditional banks and horizontal fintech players

You can find the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Worldpay's Embedded Finance Launch: Defensive Move or Market Disruption?

Worldpay Launches Embedded Finance Offering in the US

Move over Adyen and Stripe, there is a new sheriff in town. At least, that's how the team at Worldpay would like to frame the narrative, I guess. But what happened? The international payment provider Worldpay has announced a new Embedded Finance offering in the US, where it launched banking and lending products in partnership with Unit (Worldpay).

From Payments-Only to Full Embedded Finance Stack

Before this launch, Worldpay was a pure payment company, enabling its customers to accept payments. When this customer was, for example, a platform or a Vertical SaaS provider, then Worldpay enabled the business's customers of this platform or Vertical SaaS provider to accept payments from their own clients. This is what we would describe as Embedded Payments, and is referred to as 'Money in' in the image. Now, Worldpay also offers Embedded Banking ("Manage my money"), Embedded Lending ("Get capital") and corporate spend management features ("Money out"). The platform or vertical SaaS provider can now also offer bank accounts, loans and other features through the usage of Worldpay.

Adyen and Stripe are globally the two payment providers that likely have the most extensive Embedded Finance offerings (in terms of breadth of features). With one partnership and announcement, Worldpay is aiming to close this gap.

The Unit Partnership: A Surprising Choice?

The biggest surprise in this announcement for me is that Worldpay chose Unit as the underlying provider. Don't get me wrong, I am impressed by what the Unit team is building, and they already have some significant partnerships in place. However, Worldpay is on another level, and especially becomes the one provider that enables such a massive company to manage banking, lending, and corporate expenses (Worldpay processes 80% more transactions than Stripe, according to Unit's CEO).

US-Only Launch: Geographic Considerations

But this partnership with Unit also signals one thing: this is a US-only feature, as Unit is currently focusing on its home market. Through quick research, I found that Worldpay's revenue and payment volume are approximately 70-80% from the US, with the remaining 20-30% spread across all other 149 markets in which the company operates (Payments Dive). Thus, this fact, combined with the partnership with the US-only Unit, suggests that Worldpay's Embedded Finance will remain US-only for the time being.

Can Worldpay Compete? A Retention Play vs. Customer Acquisition

Can Worldpay's Embedded Finance offering actually compete with Adyen and Stripe? I guess we will find out. Their competitors have invested considerable time and resources in their banking and lending activities. Therefore, I would have my doubts that Worldpay can win the current customers of Stripe and Adyen. However, perhaps this launch is not so much aimed at winning new customers as it is at reducing the number of customers leaving Worldpay to obtain additional Embedded Finance features?

Before this product launch, a Worldpay customer who wanted to offer banking or lending products would either need to find a provider to integrate in addition to the Worldpay integration or migrate to Adyen and Stripe for all their embedded needs. There are pros and cons to each approach; however, I am sure Worldpay lost a few interesting customers due to the missing Embedded Finance features.

I am curious how the Worldpay Embedded Finance product offering will perform. What's your take? Is this a defensive move to stop the bleeding, or the beginning of a serious challenge to Adyen and Stripe's dominance?

Reverb's Digital Wallet Strategy: Keeping Seller Money in the Marketplace

Photo credits: Ansa

Reverb Launches Digital Wallet with Ansa to Keep Money in the Marketplace

Reverb, the online marketplace for musical instruments and gear, launched a digital wallet powered by US wallet provider Ansa. The concept is straightforward: sellers keep their earnings in the wallet instead of transferring to their bank account, then use those funds to buy more gear on the platform. For that, they receive 1% cash back as an incentive (Ansa).

The Marketplace Wallet Playbook

If I were to quote our previous virtual event guest, Christian von Hammel-Bonten, this is the typical playbook for keeping money within your business as long as possible. When a seller lists their guitar, makes a sale, and then immediately buys another guitar from someone else on Reverb, the platform never has to process an external payout, resulting in lower payment costs, more transactions, and higher retention.

I don’t live in the US and am not really into instruments, so I first thought Reverb is likely a small niche marketplace. Well, the marketplace processes around $1 billion annually with 10 million monthly visitors. The question is whether sellers actually want to keep their money on the platform or prefer the flexibility of having it in their bank account.

Why Ansa?

Ansa is positioning itself as the infrastructure provider for marketplace wallets. They handle wallet functionality, the promotions engine (such as 1% cashback), and the instant payout mechanics. Use cases like this are a perfect fit for them. I recall that in our podcast episode #24, I spoke with Arda Cagaptay about potential use cases for wallets.

The interesting part is whether this wallet actually changes seller behaviour. A 1% incentive isn't huge. However, for a musician who wants to sell one item and immediately (or soon after) buy another, the use case makes a lot of sense.

I'm curious to see if other marketplaces follow this playbook or if the wallet approach only works in specific verticals where repeat transactions are common.

In other Embedded Finance news

• We learned already about Nivoda’s Embedded Lending product offering in podcast episode 33. The company has now officially announced its $60 million debt funding, which will provide flexible payment options for retailers and diamond buyers, as discussed in the podcast (Tech Funding News).

• Lufthansa went live with its new bank partner, Deutsche Bank, for its co-branded credit card on October 1st. Now the “painful” process of re-carding starts, where current cardholders are invited and/or incentivised to request a new card (Deutsche Bank).

• Global finance platform and banking-as-a-service provider Airwallex has announced the launch of Nordic currencies for its issuing customers, marking the company’s first step into the Nordic region (Finextra).

• Luke Voiles, the CEO of US embedded lending provider Pipe, shares his view on why so many Fintech companies fail with international expansion and what they should do differently (The Financial Revolutionist).

• Is Embedded Payroll the new trend topic in Embedded Finance? It appears like that, at least in the US. Financial companies like Green Dot, U.S. Bank and Remitly are showing what this could look like and non-financial brands could follow (Tearsheet).

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this edition.

My newsletter, podcast, and event activities are free, but I need your support to continue. Please share Embedded Finance Review with your friends and coworkers, and let me know your feedback (links above).

And if you need help understanding, building, or launching an embedded finance product, visit my website and get in touch with me.

Best wishes from Berlin,

Lars Markull (LinkedIn)

In this episode, Marcel Meitza, founder and CEO of GetMomo, shares how his Berlin-based vertical fintech is building the "operating system for European real estate." Marcel explains how GetMomo solves a critical inefficiency in property management: the manual, time-consuming process of tracking rent payments, deposits, and allocating funds across hundreds of accounts. With a background in banking and consulting at BCG, Marcel identified a €30+ billion opportunity in Germany alone, where the average property manager oversees 900 units but relies on outdated spreadsheets and manual workflows. GetMomo now serves property managers ranging from 100 to 45,000 units under management, partnering with German banks to offer deposit accounts, virtual IBANs, and automated payment reconciliation, all while integrating seamlessly with existing property management ERPs.

Why Property Management Needs Vertical Fintech Solutions

• The average German property manager oversees 900 units and hundreds of bank accounts, spending most of their time on manual payment allocation and data entry

• 20% of the property management workforce will retire in the next five years, creating a sustainability crisis rather than a growth opportunity

• The core challenge isn't finding tenants or maintaining buildings; it's extracting banking data and importing it into ERP systems efficiently

• GetMomo positions itself as a "fintech plugin" that sits on top of existing ERPs, eliminating the need for costly system migrations

• Property managers have typically stayed with the same bank for 15 years before switching, making trust and ease of implementation critical

Building Banking Infrastructure for Real Estate

• GetMomo offers a full banking suite: deposit accounts, rental accounts, condominium accounts, reserve accounts for renovations, and credit products

• The platform automates the entire deposit workflow: when a tenant is created in the ERP, GetMomo automatically creates a deposit account and tracks installment payments

• Virtual IBANs enable automatic payment reconciliation, saving hours of manual work per week

• Unlike traditional banking as a service plays, GetMomo integrates directly with niche German banks specialized in real estate

• This integration complexity creates a moat; the technical expertise to work with traditional banks rather than modern BaaS providers gives GetMomo a competitive advantage

Why German Banking Partnerships Were Non-Negotiable

• Real estate is deeply traditional, and GetMomo's early challenge was overcoming the "since when are you operating?" question

• Property managers demanded German bank partners with recognized deposit insurance schemes; foreign providers were rejected despite having superior products

• Deutsche Bank's decision to terminate property management contracts during negative interest periods burned bridges that remain unforgettable in the industry

• GetMomo works exclusively with German banks like VVRB and SWK Bank, prioritizing financial stability and willingness to "go the extra mile"

• The partner selection process focused less on brand recognition and more on reputation within the real estate community and speed of implementation

The Modular Go-to-Market Strategy

• GetMomo's pitch centers on plug and play simplicity: property managers can start with one product (like deposits) without migrating everything at once

• The biggest objection isn't trust in the product; it's fear of implementation complexity after past painful ERP migrations

• Onboarding focuses on proving value to employees across age ranges, with senior staff often surprised by how "self-explanatory" the software is

• Customer expansion is organic: once property managers see value, they consistently add more products (condominium accounts, rental accounts, more deposits)

• GetMomo has built a strong brand through word of mouth, which is the most important acquisition channel in the traditionally networked real estate industry

ERP Integration as a Strategic Moat

• When GetMomo launched in 2021, ERP providers refused integrations, believing their own modules could replicate the functionality

• Over the past 2.5 years, ERPs have shifted dramatically, opening up to third-party integrations as the market demands best of breed solutions

• GetMomo now prioritizes deep integrations with the most used ERPs in their customer base, eliminating double data entry

• The integration strategy strengthens the ERP's value proposition: older ERPs become viable when enhanced with GetMomo's live banking data

• ERP partnerships create a second acquisition channel, with providers recommending GetMomo for all banking related needs

Open Banking: Threat or Opportunity?

• Marcel doesn't view open banking as a threat; even in a "perfect" open banking world, GetMomo's value comes from workflow automation, not just data access

• The complexity of real estate payment workflows (deposits, rent allocation, reserve management) goes far beyond consumer level "read data and initiate payment" use cases

• Most German banks have scattered real estate customers across traditional savings banks, with no specialized focus or tailored solutions

• GetMomo works with banks ranging from €200 million to €40 billion in balance sheet size; what matters is the partnership quality, not bank size

• The technical integration expertise with traditional banks creates defensibility that open banking APIs alone cannot replicate

Expansion Strategy: Building the System of Record for European Real Estate

• GetMomo's goal is to become the "system of record" for the real estate industry, capturing all payment-related data flows

• The product roadmap focuses on enabling an AI agent where property managers can ask "who has paid?" and get instant, accurate reports

• Germany is Europe's largest rental market, but France and other markets are even more fragmented, with lower technical sophistication

• GetMomo will never expand into adjacent areas like tenant communication; the focus remains strictly on payment infrastructure

• The company aims to leverage banking revenues to subsidise feature development, a model Marcel recommends for other vertical fintech opportunities

From Banking Apprentice to Vertical Fintech Founder

• Marcel's journey began with a traditional banking apprenticeship in Germany, a good start that gave him deep financial services knowledge

• Working in New York social housing exposed him to the shocking inefficiency of check-based rent payments (a system that still exists today)

• After studying and working at BCG, Marcel knew he wanted to build in fintech and remembered the real estate payment problem

• Early customer conversations with property managers (many now GetMomo customers) validated that the pain points were fundamental and the opportunity massive

• The founder insight: starting with workflows often reveals the underlying banking infrastructure needed, and those banking revenues can fund product innovation

Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

I'm usually the one commenting on LinkedIn posts saying, "That's not actually Embedded Finance." But now, it happened to me.

You might recall that I posted about Club Brugge’s fintech product last week, and no other than David Parker (Director at Polymath Consulting, judge at 360 Payment Awards, etc.) disagreed with my categorisation in his LinkedIn comment.

What to do now? Delete the post? Rewrite it? No! I decided to invite David to our next virtual event on Friday, October 10th and discuss this with all of you.

We will dive deep into the intersection of co-brands vs. embedded finance, and we look forward to many joining the event and discussion:

Register here

And now let’s dive in 👇

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How Nivoda Built 'Buy Now, Grow Faster' for the Global Jewellery Trade with Stefan Scherpenborg

From traditional banking to building embedded lending at a B2B marketplace. What does it actually take to launch a fintech product within a vertical platform?

Stefan Scherpenborg made the jump from ABN Amro to Head of Nivoda Capital, where he's building "Buy Now, Grow Faster" credit for the global jewellery trade. His operator insights on the build vs. buy decisions, compliance challenges, and customer adoption strategies are gold.

In the newest Embedded Finance Review Podcast episode, we covered:

• Why traditional banks abandoned jewellery financing and how marketplace data creates better underwriting

• The hybrid approach to building fintech infrastructure (What to build in-house vs. partner for)

• How the "Buy Now, Grow Faster" philosophy prioritises customer growth over lending profits

• Scaling embedded credit across 10,000+ jewellery retailers globally

• Practical lessons from transitioning banking expertise to marketplace-native products

You can find the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Italian Digital Accounting Provider Sibill Launches Embedded Banking Product

Italian digital accounting provider Sibill launched an embedded banking product in partnership with Swan. The banking product consists of a debit card and a payment account with Italian IBANs (Aziendabanca).

The Natural Convergence of Accounting and Banking

As mentioned many times before, digital accounting is an obvious hot area for embedded banking. Historically, accounting and banking services have been provided by two different parties, not because it was the best solution, but because entry barriers made it difficult for one party to offer the other's services. Nowadays, we see many digital accounting providers launching banking products, and even some banks venture into partnerships with accounting providers to compete with the digital accounting and embedded banking product stack.

What Makes Sibill's Approach Stand Out

Two things stood out for me in the launch announcement for Sibill. Firstly, the modularity of the embedded banking product. SMEs can decide whether to use cards and accounts, or just cards or just accounts. In some cases, B2B embedded banking products encourage their users to use cards as frequently as possible, thereby generating additional revenue through interchange fees. The accounts-only option indicates that the team has carefully considered the problems and preferences of their customers and launched a product that addresses these.

Breaking Ground in the Italian Market

Secondly, while we have seen many digital accounting providers with embedded banking products before, we have not seen as many from Italy. Perhaps, we can even extend that to Embedded Finance solutions in general. There are probably two primary reasons for this: the limited number of (larger) tech companies in Italy, especially compared to Middle & Western Europe and the regulatory scrutiny. The latter point presented a challenge for a few infrastructure providers, who had to delay or de-scope their offerings in Italy due to the local regulator's intervention. Therefore, I am delighted to see the Sibill embedded banking launch announcement and really hope for their success, also because it might motivate other local companies to follow suit.

Hnry Expands to UK, Partners with Edenred Payment Solutions

New Zealand tax provider for sole traders Hnry expands to the UK and partners with Edenred Payment Solutions (Fintech Finance News). Hnry supports its users in all kinds of tax-related activities, such as filing taxes, expense management, and expert support for personal tax questions.

How the Service Works

The financial offering of Hnry in the UK includes a payment account and debit card, which Edenred Payment Solutions provides. The sole trader can use the payment account to receive all of their self-employed income, and Hnry will then automatically calculate, deduct and pay the right amount of tax for every incoming payment. The remainder of the amount will be transferred to the user's chosen account, typically their personal bank account, where they spend their money. In addition, the Hnry Mastercard can be used for all business-related expenses.

Addressing a Common Challenge

The solution is comparable to other sole-trader solutions in Europe, such as Accountable (Belgium and Germany). One of the common challenges for sole traders is that they are unsure how much of the money they receive from their clients is actually theirs, as they need to pay VAT, income tax, and business expenses. Digital tools like Hnry make this a lot easier and provide insight about taxes due that the sole trader typically never had.

Perfect Timing for UK Expansion

And there is a reason why Hnry made the significant expansion from Down Under to the UK in 2025, as the British government is actively working towards “Making Tax Digital” with a big launch date in April 2026. Solutions like Hnry are needed to achieve such ambitious goals.

In other Embedded Finance news

• Visa has announced the launch of its Fleet 2.0 programme with 15 different partners, supporting its global initiative to accelerate innovation in fleet and B2B mobility payments (The Paypers).

• Pleo officially rolls out its Embedded Finance solution, which we covered before already (The Paypers)

• Embedded Insurance provider Qover partners with Helvetia to expand their joint capabilities across multiple insurance markets and product lines (The Paypers).

• WhatsApp adds QR code payments to business app in India (Finextra)

• Mercado Libre Expands Beyond Consumer Market With Launch of B2B Unit (PYMNTS).

• 65% of SMBs Are Ready to Switch Software for Embedded Finance (PYMNTS) and 90% of SMBs Say Embedded Finance Is Now Essential (PYMNTS).

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this edition.

My newsletter, podcast, and event activities are free, but I need your support to continue. Please share Embedded Finance Review with your friends and coworkers, and let me know your feedback (links above).

And if you need help understanding, building, or launching an embedded finance product, visit my website and get in touch with me.

Best wishes from Berlin,

Lars Markull (LinkedIn)

Empowering Sole Traders with Automated Tax Management

New Zealand tax provider for sole traders Hnry expands to the UK and partners with Edenred Payment Solutions (Fintech Finance News). Hnry supports its users in all kinds of tax-related activities, such as filing taxes, expense management, and expert support for personal tax questions.

How the Service Works

The financial offering of Hnry in the UK includes a payment account and debit card, which Edenred Payment Solutions provides. The sole trader can use the payment account to receive all of their self-employed income, and Hnry will then automatically calculate, deduct and pay the right amount of tax for every incoming payment. The remainder of the amount will be transferred to the user's chosen account, typically their personal bank account, where they spend their money. In addition, the Hnry Mastercard can be used for all business-related expenses.

Addressing a Common Challenge

The solution is comparable to other sole-trader solutions in Europe, such as Accountable (Belgium and Germany). One of the common challenges for sole traders is that they are unsure how much of the money they receive from their clients is actually theirs, as they need to pay VAT, income tax, and business expenses. Digital tools like Hnry make this a lot easier and provide insight about taxes due that the sole trader typically never had.

Perfect Timing for UK Expansion

And there is a reason why Hnry made the significant expansion from Down Under to the UK in 2025, as the British government is actively working towards “Making Tax Digital” with a big launch date in April 2026. Solutions like Hnry are needed to achieve such ambitious goals.

Italian digital accounting provider Sibill launched an embedded banking product in partnership with Swan. The banking product consists of a debit card and a payment account with Italian IBANs (Aziendabanca).

The Natural Convergence of Accounting and Banking

As mentioned many times before, digital accounting is an obvious hot area for embedded banking. Historically, accounting and banking services have been provided by two different parties, not because it was the best solution, but because entry barriers made it difficult for one party to offer the other's services. Nowadays, we see many digital accounting providers launching banking products, and even some banks venture into partnerships with accounting providers to compete with the digital accounting and embedded banking product stack.

What Makes Sibill's Approach Stand Out

Two things stood out for me in the launch announcement for Sibill. Firstly, the modularity of the embedded banking product. SMEs can decide whether to use cards and accounts, only cards or only accounts. In some cases, B2B embedded banking products encourage their users to use cards as frequently as possible, generating additional revenue through interchange. The accounts-only option indicates that the team has carefully considered the problems and preferences of their customers and launched a product that addresses these.

Breaking Ground in the Italian Market

Secondly, while we have seen many digital accounting providers with embedded banking products before, we have not seen as many from Italy. Perhaps, we can even extend that to Embedded Finance solutions in general. There are probably two primary reasons for this: the limited number of (larger) tech companies in Italy, especially compared to Middle & Western Europe and the regulatory scrutiny. The latter point presented a challenge for a few infrastructure providers, who had to delay or de-scope their offerings in Italy due to the local regulator's intervention. Therefore, I am delighted to see the Sibill embedded banking launch announcement and really hope for their success, also because it might motivate other local companies to follow suit.

Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

You might notice a little different formatting of the stories in today’s newsletter. For the last two weeks, I have been testing the process of publishing news stories separately on my website and then compiling them for the weekly newsletter.

The stories on my website tend to be a bit longer than my usual newsletter stories. Last week, I took the effort to condense the stories for the newsletter, but this week I decided to copy and paste the stories from my website. I hope to find the “best” approach in the following few editions. Again, your feedback helps me a lot → End of this mailing.

Embedded Finance Dinners

1. On Wednesday, I will be hosting an Embedded Lending Dinner during the E-commerce Expo in London, together with finmid. We have one spot left. Apply here.

2. In the last two years, I have hosted a side event during the B2B SaaS conference ARRtist in Berlin. For this year, I decided on a different kind of event later this year (more on this later). But I can’t let a B2B SaaS conference happen in my hometown without any Embedded Finance community gathering. Thus, I have teamed up with my friends from Swan to host an Embedded Finance Dinner on October 9th, right after the ARRtist conference in Berlin. Invite-only and only B2B SaaS companies. Interested in joining? Ping me.

And now let’s dive in 👇

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Odoo Launches Global Expense Management Card with Stripe and Mastercard Partnership

International business software provider Odoo is launching an expense management card solution powered by Stripe and Mastercard to serve its 15 million users across 175+ countries. The product was presented in a product webinar on YouTube in June, and the Odoo CEO Fabien Punckaers shared a photo of one of the first cards on LinkedIn this week - that’s where I spotted the product launch.

About Odoo: From Open-Source to €5 Billion All-in-One Platform

Odoo began as a pure open-source provider of business software in 2005 and has evolved into an all-in-one software solution provider. It targets businesses worldwide with various software solutions, including CRM, project management, invoicing, website creation, and more. The selling proposition is that companies should not spend hours searching for a suitable provider for each specific task, but instead use a single provider, Odoo, especially when tools need to be connected and data needs to be transferred.

As of November 2024, Odoo is valued at €5 billion, has 15 million users and employs over 6,000 people. Their software is used in over 175 countries, with the main markets including the US, India, China, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Odoo Card Features: Physical, Virtual, and Mobile Wallet Integration

The card offering itself is not unique, as we have seen many companies in this space launch similar card offerings. According to the YouTube video, Odoo cards are available as physical and virtual cards, including the possibility to add the Odoo cards to a mobile wallet. Customers can add spending limits, merchant categories and other real-time control features. Crucially, the data and card functionality will be integrated into the relevant Odoo services, such as expenses and accounting.

Why This Launch Matters: International Scale Sets Odoo Apart

What makes this announcement unique is the international scale of Odoo. There are already international companies with a global presence that offer Embedded Finance products in different continents; however, the cases involving card issuance are limited. This international scale of Odoo also likely put Stripe into the perfect spot as the issuing partner. Realistically, this likely came down to a comparison between Adyen and Stripe, with the US company ultimately winning the deal.

In the YouTube video, it is mentioned that the Odoo cards will be first launched in Europe, and the US will follow later. Odoo is likely keen to roll out the card in as many countries as possible, but can only do so in the countries where Stripe Issuing is available.

I find Odoo a fascinating company and Fabien Pinckaers are an outstanding CEO. If you want to learn more about the company, I highly suggest listening to his podcast interview on 20VC from February 2025.

Club Brugge Launches Embedded Finance Debit Card: How Football Clubs Are Moving Beyond Traditional Banking Partnerships

The Belgian football club Club Brugge has launched Club Pay, a new debit card for its fans and supporters. Starting with the new 2025-2026 football season, every member can request a free card (Club Brugge).

A card owner receives loyalty points when they use the card for payments with Club Brugge partners, such as DAZN, WorldKarts, and Joxx. The loyalty points can be redeemed via the app for benefits from the partners. The card is a debit card that the member connects with their bank account, and each payment is collected by direct debit (commonly referred to as a detached debit card). The major benefit is that after the card is connected to the bank account, it can be used immediately, without the need for a top-up.

Football Clubs and Financial Services: From Branded Banking to Embedded Finance

Club Brugge is not the first sports club to venture into financial services. I recall that clubs such as Bayern Munich and Benfica Lisbon offered financial services before. However, both clubs had a partnership with a traditional bank, and the supporter was required to open a bank account with that bank. The Club Pay solution by Club Brugge is a proper Embedded Finance product, where the supporter applies, activates and uses the card within the same app. And since it's a detached debit card, the supporter does not have to change bank accounts, but instead uses the new card on top of her existing account.

In the past years, I have seen more sports clubs innovating with financial services, but most of them focus on in-stadium payments. Most importantly, there was a partnership between Austrian payment company Blue Code and OneFootball for in-app payments during the European Football Championship in Germany in 2024. It will be interesting to see whether Club Pay will be successful, and if its success will motivate other clubs to follow suit with a similar solution. One of the deciding success factors for Club Pay and other solutions is likely whether the partners and their benefits are attractive enough for the supporters.

The Technology Behind Club Pay: Mastercard and Auric Partnership

The card product was built in cooperation with Mastercard and Auric. Auric is a Belgian fintech company with a payment institution licence that not only provides card-issuing services but also offers loyalty features. While these services could be relevant for a wide range of companies, Auric seems to focus quite a bit on sports clubs. On its website (Auric), it lists additional revenue streams and insights into payment transactions (which help the club and partners tailor their offering further) as the main benefits for clubs like Club Brugge to venture into a card product.

Gusto Launches Gusto Money: Payroll Provider Expands Into Embedded Finance With Credit, Bill Pay, and Invoicing

The US payroll provider Gusto has launched Gusto Money as part of a bigger announcement called Gusto Showcase (Gusto Money). Gusto Money consists of three different financial features:

• Payroll Bridge → A line of credit for businesses when cash flow is not sufficient to make payroll through a partnership with Parafin

• Bill Pay → Pay vendors and manage business expenses directly in Gusto through a partnership with Melio

• Invoicing → Send invoices and collect payments through integrated accounts receivable solutions

While presented together under the Gusto Money brand, these features actually rolled out separately throughout 2025: Bill Pay launched in May through the Melio partnership, followed by Payroll Bridge with Parafin in September. Notably, rather than building these financial services in-house, Gusto is leveraging embedded solutions from specialised fintech providers.

There are a few interesting elements in this announcement, but before diving into them, it is essential to mention that the launch is not strictly Embedded Finance. Gusto is a payroll provider, so its core product is not something banks have historically offered; nevertheless, it is still closely related to financial services. Thus, Gusto is likely more fintech than a non-financial brand.

Gusto's History with Financial Services: From 401(k) Plans to Gusto Money

Gusto Money is not the first time the company has offered adjacent financial services. Since 2016, the company has been offering pension plans (401(k) plans) to employees of their customers through a partnership with Guideline. And Gusto seemed to have liked this product offering a lot, as it acquired Guideline completely in August 2025. The company has also been developing employee-focused financial services through Gusto Wallet, which provides employees with early pay access, a debit card, spending and savings accounts, and budgeting tools, essentially creating a comprehensive employee banking experience within the payroll platform. The announcement of three features and the creation of a Gusto Money category indicate that the company is placing an even stronger focus on offering financial services to both employers and employees.

Payroll Bridge: Strategic Line of Credit for Cash Flow Challenges

Payroll Bridge, the line of credit for businesses to make payroll when cash flow is tight, seems like a highly logical product extension. We can all imagine the tricky situation of a founder or Managing Director who cannot make payroll, and what it may imply for their employees and their motivation. A line of credit at this point might be a lot more relevant for businesses than at any other point in time. That said, this also means these companies are tight on cash flow, and the underwriting is even more crucial than at different times. Thus, it would be interesting to know how many companies can actually receive the line of credit, as some will definitely be declined.

Bill Pay and Invoicing: Gusto Enters Competitive Accounts Payable Market

The strategic logic becomes clearer when considering that small businesses essentially have two main expenses: payroll and vendor payments. Having already dominated the payroll side, Gusto is now targeting the complete payment flow for SMBs.

I was pretty surprised about the launch of Bill Pay and Invoicing, though. Gusto suggests that the location where you manage payroll is also the ideal place to handle accounts receivable and payable. I guess on a high level, this makes sense as it falls under business operation, but how close is it really?

Firstly, payroll and accounts receivable and payable are typically handled separately, and most tools available in the market help you with one or the other - but not both. Therefore, many businesses have likely already set up a system for accounts payable and receivable, even if it's just in their accounting tool or business bank account.

That said, I still get that Gusto made this move. The partnership with Melio is making this move much easier, and in addition, they can put these features under the product Gusto Money. And judging by their website teasing "Coming Soon" features to "Track what's coming in, going out, and available to use—all from one connected hub," it seems like more financial features will indeed follow.

In other Embedded Finance news

• Funding rounds

  • French lending provider Defacto raised €16 million from Citi Ventures and La Maison (LinkedIn)

  • British hospitality SaaS provider Nory, which offers an Embedded Lending product, raises $37 million led by Kinnevik (Kinnevik)

  • E-commerce app provider Shop Circle, which provides lending products via a Wayflyer partnership, extends its Series B to $100 million (Tech.eu)

• Mastercard has announced the local launch of a new embedded virtual card payment capability, with Westpac becoming the first commercial issuer in Australia to activate the solution for clients using Oracle Fusion Cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (Finextra)

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this edition.

My newsletter, podcast, and event activities are free, but I need your support to continue. Please share Embedded Finance Review with your friends and coworkers, and let me know your feedback (links above).

And if you need help understanding, building, or launching an embedded finance product, visit my website and get in touch with me.

Best wishes from Berlin,

Lars Markull (LinkedIn)

The Belgian football club Club Brugge has launched Club Pay, a new debit card for its fans and supporters. Starting with the new 2025-2026 football season, every member can request a free card (Club Brugge).

A card owner receives loyalty points when they use the card for payments with Club Brugge partners, such as DAZN, WorldKarts, and Joxx. The loyalty points can be redeemed via the app for benefits from the partners. The card is a debit card that the member connects with their bank account, and each payment is collected by direct debit (commonly referred to as a detached debit card). The major benefit is that after the card is connected to the bank account, it can be used immediately, without the need for a top-up.

Football Clubs and Financial Services: From Branded Banking to Embedded Finance

Club Brugge is not the first sports club to venture into financial services. I recall that clubs such as Bayern Munich and Benfica Lisbon offered financial services before. However, both clubs had a partnership with a traditional bank, and the supporter was required to open a bank account with that bank. The Club Pay solution by Club Brugge is a proper Embedded Finance product, where the supporter applies, activates and uses the card within the same app. And since it's a detached debit card, the supporter does not have to change bank accounts but instead uses the new card on top of her existing account.

In the past years, I have seen more sports clubs innovating with financial services, but most of them focus on in-stadium payments. Most importantly, there was a partnership between Austrian payment company Blue Code and OneFootball for in-app payments during the European Football Championship in Germany in 2024. It will be interesting to see whether Club Pay will be successful, and if its success will motivate other clubs to follow suit with a similar solution. One of the deciding success factors for Club Pay and other solutions is likely whether the partners and their benefits are attractive enough for the supporters.

The Technology Behind Club Pay: Mastercard and Auric Partnership

The card product was built in cooperation with Mastercard and Auric. Auric is a Belgian fintech company with a payment institution licence that not only provides card-issuing services but also offers loyalty features. While these services could be relevant for a wide range of companies, Auric seems to focus quite a bit on sports clubs. On its website (Auric), it lists additional revenue streams and insights into payment transactions (which help the club and partners tailor their offering further) as the main benefits for clubs like Club Brugge to venture into a card product.

The US payroll provider Gusto has launched Gusto Money as part of a bigger announcement called Gusto Showcase (Gusto Money). Gusto Money consists of three different financial features:

• Payroll Bridge → A line of credit for businesses when cash flow is not sufficient to make payroll through a partnership with Parafin

• Bill Pay → Pay vendors and manage business expenses directly in Gusto through a partnership with Melio

• Invoicing → Send invoices and collect payments through integrated accounts receivable solutions

While presented together under the Gusto Money brand, these features actually rolled out separately throughout 2025: Bill Pay launched in May through the Melio partnership, followed by Payroll Bridge with Parafin in September. Notably, rather than building these financial services in-house, Gusto is leveraging embedded solutions from specialised fintech providers.

There are a few interesting elements in this announcement, but before diving into them, it is essential to mention that the launch is not strictly Embedded Finance. Gusto is a payroll provider, so its core product is not something banks have historically offered; nevertheless, it is still closely related to financial services. Thus, Gusto is likely more fintech than a non-financial brand.

Gusto's History with Financial Services: From 401(k) Plans to Gusto Money

Gusto Money is not the first time the company has offered adjacent financial services. Since 2016, the company has been offering pension plans (401(k) plans) to employees of their customers through a partnership with Guideline. And Gusto seemed to have liked this product offering a lot, as it acquired Guideline completely in August 2025. The company has also been developing employee-focused financial services through Gusto Wallet, which provides employees with early pay access, a debit card, spending and savings accounts, and budgeting tools, essentially creating a comprehensive employee banking experience within the payroll platform. The announcement of three features and the creation of a Gusto Money category indicate that the company is placing an even stronger focus on offering financial services to both employers and employees.

Payroll Bridge: Strategic Line of Credit for Cash Flow Challenges

Payroll Bridge, the line of credit for businesses to make payroll when cash flow is tight, seems like a highly logical product extension. We can all imagine the tricky situation of a founder or Managing Director who cannot make payroll, and what it may imply for their employees and their motivation. A line of credit at this point might be a lot more relevant for businesses than at any other point in time. That said, this also means these companies are tight on cash flow, and the underwriting is even more crucial than at different times. Thus, it would be interesting to know how many companies can actually receive the line of credit, as some will definitely be declined.

Bill Pay and Invoicing: Gusto Enters Competitive Accounts Payable Market

The strategic logic becomes clearer when considering that small businesses essentially have two main expenses: payroll and vendor payments. Having already dominated the payroll side, Gusto is now targeting the complete payment flow for SMBs.

I was pretty surprised about the launch of Bill Pay and Invoicing, though. Gusto suggests that the location where you manage payroll is also the ideal place to handle accounts receivable and payable. I guess on a high level, this makes sense as it falls under business operation, but how close is it really?

Firstly, payroll and accounts receivable and payable are typically handled separately, and most tools available in the market help you with one or the other - but not both. Therefore, many businesses have likely already set up a system for accounts payable and receivable, even if it's just in their accounting tool or business bank account.

That said, I still get that Gusto made this move. The partnership with Melio is making this move much easier, and in addition, they can put these features under the product Gusto Money. And judging by their website teasing "Coming Soon" features to "Track what's coming in, going out, and available to use—all from one connected hub," it seems like more financial features will indeed follow.

International business software provider Odoo is launching an expense management card solution powered by Stripe and Mastercard to serve its 15 million users across 175+ countries. The product was presented in a product webinar on YouTube in June, and the Odoo CEO Fabien Punckaers shared a photo of one of the first cards on LinkedIn this week - that’s where I spotted the product launch.

About Odoo: From Open-Source to €5 Billion All-in-One Platform

Odoo began as a pure open-source provider of business software in 2005 and has evolved into an all-in-one software solution provider. It targets businesses worldwide with various software solutions, including CRM, project management, invoicing, website creation, and more. The selling proposition is that companies should not spend hours searching for a suitable provider for each specific task, but instead use a single provider, Odoo, especially when tools need to be connected and data needs to be transferred.

As of November 2024, Odoo is valued at €5 billion, has 15 million users and employs over 6,000 people. Their software is used in over 175 countries, with the main markets including the US, India, China, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Odoo Card Features: Physical, Virtual, and Mobile Wallet Integration

The card offering itself is not unique, as we have seen many companies in this space launch similar card offerings. According to the YouTube video, Odoo cards are available as physical and virtual cards, including the possibility to add the Odoo cards to a mobile wallet. Customers can add spending limits, merchant categories and other real-time control features. Crucially, the data and card functionality will be integrated into the relevant Odoo services, such as expenses and accounting.

Why This Launch Matters: International Scale Sets Odoo Apart

What makes this announcement unique is the international scale of Odoo. There are already international companies with a global presence that offer Embedded Finance products in different continents; however, the cases involving card issuance are limited. This international scale of Odoo also likely put Stripe into the perfect spot as the issuing partner. Realistically, this likely came down to a comparison between Adyen and Stripe, with the US company ultimately winning the deal.

In the YouTube video, it is mentioned that the Odoo cards will be first launched in Europe, and the US will follow later. Odoo is likely keen to roll out the card in as many countries as possible, but can only do so in the countries where Stripe Issuing is available.

I find Odoo a fascinating company and Fabien Pinckaers are an outstanding CEO. If you want to learn more about the company, I highly suggest listening to his podcast interview on 20VC from February 2025.

What happens when traditional banks abandon an entire industry, leaving thousands of small businesses struggling with cash flow constraints? In the jewellery trade, this challenge became an opportunity for innovation. Stefan Scherpenborg, Head of Nivoda Capital, joins the Embedded Finance Review podcast to share how they built a revolutionary embedded credit solution that's transforming how jewellery retailers access inventory financing. From leveraging marketplace transaction data for superior underwriting to creating an invisible checkout experience, Stefan reveals the strategic decisions behind building fintech infrastructure within a B2B marketplace serving over 10,000 jewellery retailers globally.

Traditional Banking Exits Create Embedded Finance Opportunities

The jewellery industry faced a significant challenge when traditional financial institutions began pulling away from the sector over the past decade. This exodus created a financing gap that marketplace-native solutions were uniquely positioned to fill.

• Why banks retreated from jewellery financing - Risk assessment challenges due to limited public data on small jewellery businesses and industry-specific complexities

• Data advantage of marketplace lenders - Nivoda's access to real transaction data, payment behaviour, and customer trading patterns enables superior underwriting compared to traditional credit providers

• Serving underbanked small businesses - Most jewellery retailers are SMBs with limited access to public financial data, making it difficult for external lenders to assess them accurately

• Industry specialisation benefits - Deep understanding of jewellery trade cycles, seasonal patterns, and inventory management creates competitive advantages in risk assessment

Buy Now Pay Later Evolution: From Consumer Credit to B2B Growth Financing

Stefan introduces Nivoda's unique philosophy of "Buy Now, Grow Faster" - a fundamental shift from traditional buy now, pay later models that prioritise customer growth over immediate lending profits.

• Beyond traditional BNPL models - Focus on removing capital constraints to enable business growth rather than maximising credit revenue

• Invisible checkout experience - Embedded credit that requires minimal friction, with preset limits allowing seamless ordering without payment delays

• Growth partnership approach - Credit as a tool to help jewellery retailers expand their businesses, increase inventory, and serve more customers

• Success metrics redefined - Measuring success by customer growth and marketplace transaction volume rather than standalone lending profitability

Building Fintech Infrastructure Within Marketplace Ecosystems

Nivoda Capital's development showcases a strategic hybrid approach to building embedded finance products, striking a balance between speed to market and long-term scalability and compliance requirements.

• Hybrid partnership strategy - Combining third-party decision engines and compliance support with in-house data control and orchestration

• Minimum viable partnerships - Working with specialised vendors for specific capabilities while maintaining control over core data and customer relationships

• Compliance-first scaling approach - Building strong compliance foundations early to support long-term growth and regulatory requirements

• In-house capability development - Gradually building proprietary credit models and risk assessment tools while leveraging external expertise for non-core functions

Marketplace Data Advantages in Credit Underwriting

Access to first-party transaction data creates significant advantages for marketplace-embedded credit providers compared to traditional lenders who rely primarily on external data sources.

• Transaction-level insights - Real-time visibility into customer purchasing patterns, order frequency, and payment behaviour across the platform

• Customer relationship depth - Existing KYC processes and ongoing business relationships provide a comprehensive customer understanding

• Industry-specific risk factors - Understanding jewellery trade nuances like seasonal fluctuations, bespoke order lead times, and inventory management challenges

• Predictive analytics capabilities - Using marketplace data to identify growth potential and creditworthiness signals not visible to external lenders

Global Expansion Strategy for Embedded Finance Products

Stefan outlines Nivoda Capital's three-horizon approach to scaling embedded credit internationally, from operational stability to revenue optimisation and geographic expansion.

• Horizon 1: Foundation building - Establishing stable core performance, compliance infrastructure, and unit economics validation

• Horizon 2: Revenue optimisation - Partnering with institutional lenders, refining credit models, and optimising pricing strategies

• Horizon 3: Global scaling - Leveraging Nivoda's international marketplace presence to expand credit offerings across multiple geographic markets

• Product evolution roadmap - Future opportunities in inventory management solutions, virtual auditing, and revenue-based credit products

Lessons for Building Embedded Finance in Vertical Marketplaces

Stefan's transition from traditional banking to marketplace fintech provides valuable insights for entrepreneurs and product leaders considering embedded finance initiatives.

• Customer-centric vs. regulation-first approach - Opportunity to build truly customer-focused financial products rather than working backwards from regulatory constraints

• Industry expertise importance - Deep understanding of vertical-specific challenges and opportunities enables better product-market fit

• Organisational alignment necessity - Ensuring company-wide understanding and support for embedded finance initiatives across engineering, product, and sales teams

• Entrepreneurial mindset requirements - Balancing operational execution with strategic planning while building new business lines within existing organisations

Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

I am still testing a few things with my newsletter and processes. You might have noticed that I started to publish individual news stories on my website. I have featured the same stories in this newsletter below, but also linked to the (slightly longer) posts on my website.

Why am I doing this? I am trying to evolve my content from a newsletter into a broader knowledge platform. Basically, less “breaking news” and more “how does this work”. I have spoken to a few readers about this in the past weeks, and so far, all of them liked the idea. The biggest change for readers will happen when I make the eventual necessary move to leave my beloved newsletter tool, Beehiiv, for a broader publishing platform. Stay tuned, and please continue to share your feedback (end of this mailing).

And finally, we have one (!) spot left for our Embedded Lending Dinner during E-Commerce Expo in London next Wednesday. Check out the event page, register and/or share with your needwork.

And now let’s dive in 👇

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NatWest Boxed's latest research covers C-level executives at major UK consumer brands that have implemented embedded finance in their current offering, its impact on their brand, and what they expect from their provider: Download here.

How a Swiss Bank Is Building Embedded Finance Partnerships Across Europe

Hypothekarbank Lenzburg, a small Swiss regional bank, may be one of Europe's most advanced adopters of Embedded Finance. Known as "Hypi," the bank has strategically developed its Banking-as-a-Service model alongside traditional banking, leveraging a combination of foresight, innovation, and calculated risk-taking (comment from our reader Dr. Manuel Thomet on LinkedIn). In his first year as CEO, Silvan Hilfiker made two critical moves: acquiring a stake in German bank Sutor Bank and taking over Swiss Bankers.

Sutor Bank can be best described as the German equivalent of Hypothekarbank Lenzburg: a smaller bank that has grown its fintech partnerships into a core offering. According to Hilfiker, the strategic partnership creates opportunities to expand Hypi’s Open Banking platform Finstar. The platform is currently made "EU-ready" with the support of Sutor Bank. Secondly, the popular travel prepaid card service Swiss Bankers gets Hypi valuable distribution partners and an e-money license in Liechtenstein.

Switzerland's limited market size is driving this European expansion strategy. Hilfiker emphasises that the Swiss market is too small for significant growth, making expansion to other European countries necessary. The team has identified Germany as their first focus market, where they believe their core banking and open banking solutions can find sufficient customers. And of course, the partnership with Sutor Bank provides a strategic advantage in this expansion.

Longer News (EF Review), Full German interview (SchweizerAktien.net)

Uber Eats Partners with Pipe for Restaurant Capital Access in the US

Uber Eats has launched an embedded lending service for US restaurants through a partnership with Pipe, delivering pre-approved capital offers directly within the Uber Eats Manager app. It follows many of its competitors, especially in Europe. Companies like Wolt, Bolt Food, Glovo and more have launched similar lending services, indicating that embedded lending is becoming a standard offering in the food delivery ecosystem.

The entire process is embedded within the Uber Eats Manager dashboard, where eligible restaurants can see customised offers based on their platform performance. Uber selected Pipe specifically for its small business focus and seamless integration capabilities. The Uber Eats partnership is likely Pipe's biggest partnership since the company pivoted from direct lending to focus primarily on embedded finance solutions a few years ago.

Similar to other platforms, Uber's program uses flexible repayment terms tied to business performance rather than fixed monthly payments, with the rollout beginning this week across US restaurants. What's particularly interesting to me is that Uber Eats remains the only major food delivery platform in Europe without an embedded lending offering (correct me if I am wrong!). So, given this US launch and the competitive trend, maybe a European expansion could follow soon?

Longer News (EF Review), Press release (Pipe)

Rainforest's $29M Raise and New SaaS Survey Data Signal Embedded Finance Shift Beyond Payments

As regular readers know, embedded finance in vertical SaaS is a recurring theme for me. Two developments in the US potentially indicate where Europe's journey will follow.

Rainforest, the embedded payments platform, just closed an oversubscribed $29 million Series B round led by Matrix Partners. CEO Joshua Silver's positioning of "purpose-built for software platforms" versus competitors like Stripe Connect, which were "initially built for merchants and then retrofitted for the SaaS market," signals essential market maturation. Rainforest has grown revenue by more than 10x since their last funding round, processing billions in annual volume. Meanwhile, Flagship Advisory Partners released part two of their comprehensive SaaS embedded finance survey, discussed at Vertex: The Vertical Software Conference that Rainforest and Matrix Partners co-hosted.

The survey of 100 North American SaaS platforms reveals significant opportunities: while 90% accept card payments, nearly 60% generate less than 40% of their profits from embedded finance, suggesting untapped potential. The future outlook is bullish - 90% expect their embedded finance profits to grow over the next three years, with 35% expecting it to outpace core business growth. More than one-third plan to roll out business lending, payment card issuing, or consumer lending within three years. While these developments are US-focused, the trend toward embedded finance as a core value proposition rather than just a revenue stream is unmistakable, and European providers appear to be experiencing similar traction.

Longer News (EF Review), Rainforest funding (Crunchbase), Embedded Finance Survey Part 2 (Flagship Advisory)

In other Embedded Finance news

• finmid reports that its embedded lending infrastructure is now available in 30 European markets. The company has added Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, France, Hungary, Ireland, Malta, Romania, Iceland, and Switzerland to the list of countries it serves (finmid).

• Hnry, the all-in-one tax automation and accounting service for sole traders, is partnering with Edenred Payment Solutions to provide payment services, underpinning its UK launch (Fintech Finance News).

• Nayax, a global commerce enablement and payments platform, has announced a strategic partnership with Autel Energy to provide embedded payment solutions (The Paypers).

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this edition.

My newsletter, podcast, and event activities are free, but I need your support to continue. Please share Embedded Finance Review with your friends and coworkers, and let me know your feedback (links above).

And if you need help understanding, building, or launching an embedded finance product, visit my website and get in touch with me.

Best wishes from Berlin,

Lars Markull (LinkedIn)

As regular readers know, embedded finance in vertical SaaS is a recurring theme for me. Two things happened in the US that potentially can indicate where our journey in Europe will follow.

Rainforest Raises $29M for Purpose-Built Embedded Payments Platform

First, there's Rainforest, the embedded payments platform that just closed an oversubscribed $29 million Series B round led by Matrix Partners. CEO Joshua Silver's comment about being "purpose-built for software platforms" versus competitors like Stripe Connect that were "initially built for merchants and then retrofitted for the SaaS market" signals something important about market maturation. Rainforest has grown revenue by more than 10x since their last funding round, processing billions in annual volume.

90% of US SaaS Companies Expect Embedded Finance Growth Beyond Payments

The second piece comes from Flagship Advisory Partners, which just released part two of their comprehensive SaaS embedded finance survey. This research was actually discussed at Vertex: The Vertical Software Conference, which Rainforest and Matrix Partners co-hosted.

The survey of 100 North American SaaS platforms reveals some fascinating insights:

The Current State: While 90% of vertical SaaS companies accept card payments, most are leaving money on the table. Nearly 60% generate less than 40% of their profits from embedded finance, suggesting significant untapped potential.

The Future Vision: The bullishness is unmistakable. Ninety per cent of these companies expect their embedded finance profits to grow over the next three years, with 35% expecting it to outpace their core business growth significantly.

The Product Roadmap: More than one-third plan to roll out business lending, payment card issuing, or consumer lending (B2B2C) within three years.

European Embedded Finance Providers See Similar Traction

While these developments are US-focused, the trend is unmistakable: the evolution from embedded payments as a nice-to-have revenue stream to embedded finance as a core value proposition. I have discussed the European equivalent providers in the past, and it appears they are experiencing similar traction, suggesting this isn't just an American phenomenon.

Rainforest funding (Crunchbase), Embedded Finance Survey Part 2 (Flagship Advisory)

Uber Eats has launched an embedded lending service for restaurants through a partnership with lending provider Pipe. The program will deliver pre-approved capital offers directly within the Uber Eats Manager app, targeting small businesses that typically face challenges in accessing capital.

This follows a similar trend we are seeing across food delivery platforms. Just a few days ago, I covered how Bolt Food launched embedded lending for restaurants via a finmid partnership (plus many more before that), indicating that embedded finance is becoming a standard offering in the food delivery ecosystem.

Streamlined Process Without Traditional Credit Requirements

The Uber-Pipe partnership eliminates traditional barriers, such as credit checks and personal guarantees. Instead, Pipe uses AI to analyse six months of anonymous credit card transaction data from Uber to determine capital amounts. The process is entirely embedded within the Uber Eats Manager dashboard, where eligible restaurants see customised, pre-approved offers based on their platform performance.

Uber selected Pipe specifically for its small business-focused approach and seamless integration capabilities. Pipe has been offering lending solutions since 2019, but initially focused on serving businesses directly, most notably with a financing product for software-as-a-service companies. However, since a change in leadership and re-focus of the company, Embedded Finance has been its primary focus. Uber Eats is likely their biggest partner to date.

Revenue-Based Repayment Model

Similar to the Bolt Food offering, Uber's program utilises flexible repayment terms tied to business performance rather than fixed monthly payments. The rollout begins this week across Uber Eats restaurants in the US.

What’s quite interesting for me here in Europe is that Uber Eats remains the only major food delivery platform in Europe without an embedded lending offering. Given this US launch and the trend across competitors like Bolt Food, Wolt, and Glovo, perhaps a European expansion will follow soon?

You can find the full story on CNBC.

Hypothekarbank Lenzburg is a small regional bank in Switzerland. However, it may be one of the European banks that has adopted Embedded Finance the most. Dr. Manuel Thomet, Associate Partner at Synpulse and co-author of the Swiss Embedded Finance and Banking-as-a-Service study, describes "Hypi" (as Hypothekarbank Lenzburg is commonly known) as combining foresight, innovation, a healthy portion of risk-taking, and the right people in the team. These qualities have enabled them to strategically develop their Banking-as-a-Service model alongside traditional banking.

In a recent interview, Hypothekarbank Lenzburg CEO Silvan Hilfiker shared a recap of his first year in the CEO role. The most critical steps for the bank in his tenure were acquiring a stake in German bank Sutor Bank and the takeover of Swiss Bankers.

Strategic Acquisitions Open European Market Access

Sutor Bank can perhaps best be described as the German version of Hypothekarbank Lenzburg. A smaller bank that began its fintech partnerships many years ago, it has since then grown its as-a-service unit into a core offering for the bank (from my point of view, even more the case for Sutor Bank than Hypothekarbank Lenzburg). I covered the minor investment previously.

Beyond the strategic partnership, Sutor Bank represents a concrete business opportunity for Hypothekarbank Lenzburg's technology arm. The German bank needs new core banking software, and Hilfiker sees this as a chance to expand their Finstar platform. The bank has spun Finstar off into a separate entity to accelerate sales, and they're co-developing the platform with Sutor to make it "EU-ready" for the broader European market.

Swiss Bankers, on the other hand, is a travel prepaid card that appears to be quite popular in the market. Hilfiker highlights that the distribution partners and the e-money licence in Liechtenstein are two very crucial assets of Swiss Bankers. A Swiss bank with an e-money licence abroad? Now it’s getting interesting.

Why Switzerland's Market Size Forces European Expansion

But the Swiss bank doesn’t seem to stop there. Hilfiker highlights that the market size in Switzerland for certain products is limited and that the expansion to other European countries is a necessary step. This is particularly true for their Finstar core banking software, where the Swiss market is too small for significant growth. The team has already studied Germany as its first focus market and is convinced that their core banking and open banking solutions can find sufficient customers. Obviously, the strategic partnership with Sutor Bank could be handy here.

The full interview can be found on SchweizerAktien.net (in German).

Mentioned in this story: Silvan Hilfiker, Hypothekarbank Lenzburg, Sutor Bank, Dr. Manuel Thomet, Synpulse, Finstar

Danish digital accounting provider e-conomic has announced that it’s launching an embedded card offering by the end of the year. The company will leverage the card-as-a-service offering from Swedish expense management provider Mynt (Mynt).

e-conomic is the most popular digital accounting tool in Denmark, covering more than half of the local market. The company is an early member of the Visma group, and was already acquired in 2015. As a frequent reader, you will know that Visma has been developing digital accounting providers and adjacent businesses all over Europe over the past years. And Embedded Finance, especially Embedded Banking, has been a hot topic for many of Visma’s ventures.

Therefore, it’s no surprise that e-conomic makes a similar move. Mynt, on the other hand, has been gearing up on its partnership side, most notably its Nordea deal, which we covered some weeks ago. Unlike pure banking-as-a-service providers, Mynt not only offer card integration but also other spend management features. Additionally, the card is not a debit card but a credit card.

Hotel-focused SaaS provider Mews has published a new blog post about Hotel Design for the Modern Guest, prominently featuring their "Flexible Financing" solution in partnership with YouLend (Mews). While the financing product isn't new, Mews is clearly re-emphasising its value proposition for hoteliers who want to invest in property improvements but face funding barriers.

The product page (Mews) has a few more details. Hotels can receive financing from £3,000 to £1,000,000 for 3 to 12 months. And if you have noted the currency, the financing product is currently only available for UK-based companies. Since all hotels that use the Mews software solution also use Mews for all payments, offline and online, Mews can collect the repayment from the financing directly from their income.

The lending solution addresses what Mews identifies as a key industry challenge: traditional financing options are often slow and misaligned with the hospitality industry's seasonal, fast-paced nature. Through the YouLend partnership, hotels can access funding for redesigns, space enhancements, or operational upgrades, with repayments that flex with revenue and eligibility based on performance rather than projections.

Mews’ Embedded Finance Stack

It might be worth noting that Mews uses both Stripe and Adyen for its payment processing (as far as I know, they started with Stripe). Both these payment giants also offer a financing product. Adyen has already been offering this product in Europe for some time via its Balance platform, and Stripe Capital for platforms was recently announced for a few European markets. So, why did Mews still choose YouLend? There are a lot of pros and cons, but perhaps a specialised lending provider was likely a better fit for Mews and their customers' needs. Additionally, since Mews partners with two payment companies, it would have required a setup with both. As Mews seems to be exploring the demand in the UK only, it was likely the better choice to get started. Will they stick with this setup when the product proves successful? We will see.

This financing product represents a continuation of Mews' broader fintech strategy, as detailed in my podcast with CEO Matt Welle from July 2024 (Podcast). In that interview, Matt discussed how embedded finance had become a larger revenue stream than SaaS for the company, and how they were exploring various financial products, including cash flow lending, to address seasonal challenges hotels face.